The 1939 Eifelrennen was a Grand Prix motor race held at the Nürburgring on 21 May 1939.
Race
The event was the first race under the new 3-litre Grand Prix formula, and it was evident that Mercedes-Benz had produced a better car than its German rival from Auto Union, with Nuvolari's second place being put down to a combination of his brilliance and not needing to make a refuelling stop. The cars also proved to be quicker than their 5-litre predecessors. Richard Seaman and Manfred von Brauchitsch both had rocket starts and ran 1–2 as the field entered the Südkehre, but the torque proved too much for their clutches; Seaman retired at the end of the first lap and von Brauchitsch was bedevilled with clutch slip for most of the race. Lang soon took the lead and led most of the way, dropping to third only after his refuelling stop, re-taking the lead (having passed Nuvolari) when Caracciola made his stop in turn.
The race was the only Grande Epreuve appearance for Auto Union test driver/engineer/film-maker Ulli Bigalke, who beat H. P. Müller to seventh place after the latter suffered an engine problem, and for Heinz Dipper. Mercedes-Benz was also making a film over the weekend, with Auto Union's co-operation, and footage was taken during practice of a mock start. The event marked the last appearance for René Carrière, who decided to retire from the sport, having broken his leg in a practice crash.
Classification PosNoDriverTeamCarLapsTime/RetiredGrid 1 16 Hermann Lang Daimler-Benz AG Mercedes-Benz W154 10 1:40:57.1 1 2 2 Tazio Nuvolari Auto Union Auto Union D 10 +11.2 2 3 12 Rudolf Caracciola Daimler-Benz AG Mercedes-Benz W154 10 +31.3 3 4 14 Manfred von Brauchitsch Daimler-Benz AG Mercedes-Benz W154 10 +1:56.0 5 5 4 Rudolf Hasse Auto Union Auto Union D 10 +1:59.0 8 6 10 Ulli Bigalke Auto Union Auto Union D 10 +3:55.0 7 7 6 H. P. Müller Auto Union Auto Union D 7 +5:34.1 6 8 20 Hans-Hugo Hartmann Daimler-Benz AG Mercedes-Benz W154 9 10 9 22 Paul Pietsch P. Pietsch Maserati 6CM 9 9 10 26 Leonhard Joa Süddeutsche Renngemeinschaft Maserati 4CM 9 12 11 28 Philippe Etancelin Automobiles Talbot-Darracq Talbot MD 9 11 12 24 Heinz Dipper Süddeutsche Renngemeinschaft Maserati 6CM 8 13 Ret 18 Richard Seaman Daimler-Benz AG Mercedes-Benz W154 1 Clutch 4 DNS 8 Georg Meier Auto Union Auto Union D – Engine (7) DNS 30 René Carrière Automobiles Talbot-Darracq Talbot MD – Crash in practice (9) References